A New World War One Album and a Call to Action

I can’t believe May of 2016 is here. This year has disappeared so fast. After I finished performing last fall (I was on tour for several months last year promoting the American Songline book and CD), I took some time to relax and spend time with my family. During that time, regrouped to figure out what was next. I knew I wanted to do a new program on a theme like my Lincoln Highway program, but I wasn’t sure where to start. And then it came to me.

In 1917 and 1918, our nation changed forever when it entered into the First World War. More than a hundred thousand Americans fought and died in this often-overlooked period of our history, and I knew I had to share their songs and stories. I am proud to announce that I will be going back into the studio this year to record all these songs in their original sheet music as they were intended to be heard, and I plan on performing them live across the country in 2017 and 2018.

I have chosen a wide range of songs for the upcoming shows, including patriotic songs like ‘Keep the Home-Fires Burning’ and ‘It’s a Long, Long Way to Tipperary.’ Some other songs poked fun at military life, like ‘Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning’ and ‘How Ya Gonna Keep ‘em Down on the Farm.’ But it’s not all marching songs; I will also include sentimental songs on the album like ‘Till We Meet Again’ and ‘The Rose of No Man’s Land’.

And now, this is where you come in.

The grassroots effort for my first project was the backbone of my tour, album, and CD. It was as amazing as it was because of the contributions of the people and communities I came through. Because of you!

Producing an album not only takes time, it also takes money. A typical album by today’s standards is roughly 45-60 minutes with about 10-12 songs. But due to the recording technologies of the time, songs were much shorter than they are now. To make a full-length album, I need around 15-20 songs to get around that 45-minute mark. To help with these production costs, I will be running a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo for the month of May.

All funds will go strictly to the producing of the album, which includes the studio production expenses and piano accompanist’s fees. Cover art as well as any fees to publish the album on CD Baby are also included in this funding goal. If I exceed my $3,000 funding goal, I will record an additional WWI tune for every $500 raised.

The perks of this campaign include digital and/or physical copies of the album, as well as autographed copies of my American Songline book and album. International donors are welcome and I’ve got various rewards at all tiers, including the chance for you to sing on the album with me, so check them all out!

I love sharing America’s history through song, and I hope you’ll join me in having this music brought back to life again. Thank you for all of your support over the years, and I look forward to hearing from you!